Review: Dylan thrills in return to Monterey

It had been nearly half a century since Bob Dylan performed at the Monterey Fairgrounds.

His last appearance at the venue – best known for hosting the annual Monterey Jazz Festival – came back in 1964. That helps explain why Dylan’s long-overdue return, before a full house of 5,000-plus fans on Saturday night, made front page news in the area.

Of course, any chance to see the singer-songwriter perform is one that really shouldn’t be missed. It’s the modern-day equivalent to hearing William Faulkner read from one of his novels, watching Joe Louis box in a title match and witnessing Pablo Picasso paint a masterpiece. That’s not hyperbole – Dylan deserves to be ranked among the most significant figures (not just musicians) of the last 100-plus years.

The 69-year-old Minnesotan brought his so-called “Never Ending Tour,” which began in 1988, to the area for four shows. He also plays tonight (Sunday) at the Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harvey’s casino, Tuesday at the Fox Theater in Oakland and Wednesday at the Warfield in San Francisco. The Fox show is sold out, but fans still have a chance to catch Dylan at the Warfield. Tickets for the latter are $60 (cash only) and are only being sold on the day of the show, beginning at 5:30 p.m., at the venue box office. (For more information on the Warfield show, visit www.goldenvoice.com.)

Eyeing the quartet of shows in advance, however, the Monterey date really stood out as being the can’t-miss date. It represented nothing less than the intersection of two of rock ‘n’ roll’s greatest legends: Dylan, arguably the finest songwriter the genre has ever produced, and the fairgrounds, which hosted the groundbreaking Monterey International Pop Festival back in 1967.

The fact the show was being put on by Berkeley’s Another Planet Entertainment – run by Gregg Perloff and Sherry Wasserman, two locals with close ties to concert promoter Bill Graham – only heightened the ‘60s rock vibe and sense of nostalgia that coursed through the outdoor amphitheater.

Even Dylan seemed to feel the significance of the event, and he rose to the occasion by putting on one of the more accessible and entertaining performances I’ve seen him give in years.

The roughly 100-minute affair began with a raucous, jubilant version of “Rainy Day Women #12 & 35,” the opening track from 1966’s immortal “Blonde on Blonde” album. The star’s voice, as per usual, was gruff and worn, yet still comparatively easy to understand (at least by Dylan standards). Fans rejoiced at the sight of him playing guitar, but, alas, he’d put down the axe after the opener.

He’d follow with three more oldies – a country-tinged “To Ramona” and “I Don’t Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)” (both from 1964’s “Another Side of Bob Dylan”) as well as a sweetly-sung “Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine)” (from “Blonde on Blonde”) – before rocketing forward five decades for a jammed-out take on “Honest with Me” (from 2001’s “Love and Theft”).

It’s fair to quibble, and plenty do, about how the songs often come across so different in concert than on record. Part of that has to do with Dylan’s voice, which was grown less nasal and more gravelly through the years, but it’s also a result of the band’s ever-changing musical arrangements. The best way to enjoy a Dylan concert is to try and forget how the songs sounded in their original incarnations and simply enjoy them as they are presented in concert. Granted, that’s hard to do, but the payoff is substantial.

It was thrilling to watch Dylan re-fashion these old classics into something new onstage. It was like we were watching a master in the act of creation. I’d much rather have that – when it works – than simple regurgitation, which is what one usually gets from classic-rock cronies.

Dylan is known as a lot of things, but, in general, being an entertainer isn’t one of them. Try telling that the Monterey crowd, however, which had the privilege of seeing one of Dylan’s more animated performances. He even threw in a few pelvic thrusts, delivered on beat, into one of his songs.

The second half of the show was filled with old hits – “Ballad of a Thin Man,” “Highway 61 Revisited” and, the show closer, “Like a Rolling Stone” – none of which sounded much like they do on record. Some complained about that, but I applaud it. Let’s just hope that Dylan doesn’t make fans wait another 46 years to return to the Monterey Fairgrounds.

Yoda, there’s a whole generation -or two- of pop music fans (maybe ‘music consumers’ is a better label) who expect to see a something close to a live version of the music video from their favorite artists.

Bob’s fans generally are from earlier generations that expected the live shows from their favorite artists to be different from the studio recordings….though I believe Bob attracts his share of (young) jam band fans, who have more in common with 60s and 70s music fans..

Still Bob has tried the patience of even some of his most ardent/forgiving lifelong fans over the decades. I saw a Dylan appearance in the late 80s where I literally could barely tell what song he was playing most of the night.

Luckily those (booze/whatever soaked?) days are over and over the last decade -or more- Bob has found a very cool and musical groove, reinterpreting his classics and newer tunes. He may change up melodies and other things, but it’s musical now, and generally works well in concert.

He no longer fills arenas, but he is a consistently strong draw in medium size places he performs at on his never-ending tour. If he weren’t doing a show fans -older and younger- wanted to see, he (e.g.: if he were still playing indecipherable shows as he sometimes did 20+ years ago), people wouldn’t continue to turn out, year after year.

Cliff

Early 1990s, Hartford, Connecticut, in the arena where the ice hockey games are played, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers the backup band. Dylan and his fans (including me), two sides divided by a common language – English. Or at least I think his was spoken English. It was hard to tell.

It’s a good sign he’s playing the strong stuff from the 1960s. We all think he is the greatest thing since … but let’s see if young fans rediscover the strong stuff for themselves. That’s what he’ll need for legacy.

I’m a super big Dylan fan, more of his classic stuff. I saw him in Sacramento back in the 90s with Santana. The first songs I ever learned on guitar were Dylan songs like “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “Mr. Tambourine Man.”

Someone who does great Dylan covers who I’ve seen a lot over the years is David Conley who performs covers tue-sat nights at the Sardine Factory.

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